Page 67 of Heartbreak & Cupcakes
SADIE
“If you were a horse,what kind of horse would you be?” Lexi asked as she sat on the floor between my legs while I braided her hair into two French braids.
“Um...” I was thrown off by the question at first but with a cursory glance around her room, my response crystalized. “I would be a unicorn.”
It wasn’t even a lie. If I was going to be a horse, and unicorn was an option, I’d be all in.
“Me too!” she exclaimed excitedly.
“Hair tie.” I held my hand out and she placed the hairband I’d given her to hold, in my palm.
I tied it up and then smoothed my hand over the middle of the parted hair. “All done.”
She hopped up and ran over to the full-length mirror that was leaning against her far wall. “I love it! Thank you, Sadie!” She swayed back and forth causing the braids to swing like a pendulum across her back.
“You are very welcome!” Warmth spread through me as I watched her admiring her hairstyle.
Lexi was such a sweet little girl. I’d been having so much fun with her today, there’d been times I’d completely forgotten about the fire and putting my foot in my mouth this morning in the kitchen with the very shirtless Mr. Smolder.
Well…I’d forgotten about the fire anyway. Nothing had been able to distract me from the heat in the kitchen this morning.
When he ran his hand over my head to check for a bump it sparked a raging inferno in me that I still hadn’t been able to extinguish. I wasn’t sure if it was the early morning hour and the rest of the world had been asleep, or if it was the fact that he was barefoot and wearing only sweats. Whatever it was the interaction felt intimate and intense.
Living with Alex had done nothing to help with the crush I had on him. Now, I was convinced that Alex Vaughn was Batman. A superhero. He was superhuman.
I’d suspected as much when he’d shown up like a knight in shining running shorts at the fire. But I was convinced of that now, after seeing him shirtless. His chest, abs, shoulders, and arms were sculpted to perfection.
I still couldn’t believe I’d said that about him being photoshopped.
Note to self:stop mumbling under your breath because sometimes there’s an audience.
Technically, he was my boss. He was paying me to care for his daughter. I didn’t want him to think that I was some degenerate who was lusting after him. Even if that was the case.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him standing in the kitchen shirtless. His body was like staring at the sun. The image of his perfect form had been seared into my retinas. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw his perfect, athletic frame. I imagined myself reaching out and touching his chiseled abs, my hand sliding further down his body to the BD of his BDE fame.
I stood and shook my head hoping to erase my inappropriate thoughts and images like an Etch A Sketch. It didn’t work.
I needed to do something to pull myself out of the sexy quicksand Alex’s naked torso had caused me to step in. Baking. When all else failed, bake.
“Hey, do you want to help me make some muffins for my friend Mrs. Flores?”
“Yes!” Lexi exclaimed.
Mrs. Flores had texted me that she’d been released from the hospital and placed in Bay View Assisted Living. I found it ironic that I’d been encouraging her to visit the senior center there for the past six months and now she was a full-time resident. I wasn’t sure if her insurance had worked it out or if her son, or mortician grandson, had gotten involved, but I was happy to know that she was safe. I doubted she shared my feelings since she’d been so resistant to even stopping by to check the place out, so I figured some banana nut muffins would cheer her up.
And while I was there, I would let Monica know that I wouldn’t be doing my drop-offs until I got the business up and running again.
On our way to the kitchen, my phone rang. I pulled it out expecting to see Alex calling to check up on Lexi. We’d texted back and forth several times, but I hadn’t spoken to him since he told me he was going to be in the gym.
When I saw my dad’s name on the screen my heart deflated like a two-week-old balloon.
Trying not to show my disappointment, I answered with a perky, “Hey, Popsi-Cola.”
He ignored my cutsie greeting and got right down to business. “How are you? Have you spoken to your landlord? Did you find out anything from the insurance?”
“I’m fine. Not yet, he hasn’t called me back. And yes, the insurance company is sending out an investigator and I’m hoping to hear something next week.”
“Where are you? Are you at that model’s house?”
